Race Review: Winona Lake Ultra Trail 50 Mile Race

Image via Wikipedia

    By: Brent

At 2:10 I arrived at beautiful Winona Lake to get signed in and receive my swag. White running gloves. Very nice. I have always been given shirts and other odd things so a pair of legit running gloves was a nice change of pace. As I met my teammates, mostly for the first time, I could tell this was an enjoyable group and we were going to have a good time at this run. The plan was to shoot for 90 minute, 10 mile loops. I knew from the beginning I was going to struggle with that 90 minute formula for a couple reasons. First off, the furthest I had run in quite some time was 5.5 miles and secondly, when I launched, at best would be around 9 p.m., so I would be dealing with the dark.

As the field lined up there were 3 groups. The 10 milers lined up and launched, 5 minutes later the 30 milers and then another 5 back started the 50 mile runners. If you were in a relay, you still started with the distance overall you were competing with. I thought that a little odd. You would think you could pace better with the 10 mile runners, yet with the breakdown of people it was probably better. There was roughly (60) 10 mile runners, (30) 30 mile runners and (10) 50 mile (fools) runners. Impressively this race, in its second year of existence about doubled in size. The field was from all over. From Wisconsin, Georgia, Ohio and everything in between.

As the 50 mile group took off you could tell fairly quickly how people were going to do. There were all sorts of runners. Some that looked like they did this every weekend, and of course some looked like they had made a wrong turn out to this trail and had no intention of doing this. Alas, everyone left the chute. Knowing I now had about 6 hours before my lap, I then ran into town and grabbed a Subway. Some for now, some for later. It was going to be a long wait.

Whilst partaking of my tuna sub, the first runner from the 10 mile race came through at a BLISTERING 1:00:29! Insane! I didn't know the course at that point in time, but looking back at it now, I can't even begin to figure how someone does that. Second and third came in at 1:05 and 1:06 looking just as impressive. A short time later, the future first place 50 mile runner came in for his first lap running it at 1:10! Our first runner came around our figured 90 minute time frame, handed over the bib and runner 2 took off.

As time went on the parking area cleared out significantly. You could see the faces of the support groups and family members who were in for the long haul. People sleeping in cars with doors wide open. It looked like a Grateful Dead concert without the grilled cheese sandwiches. Temperatures jumped up 10 degrees from the day before so Indiana was touching its first 80 degree day of the year. Time kept running and so did the people. Runner 2 stomped out a time a bit over our 90 minute hopes, but there was no cares in the world. Runner 3 put in our best time just under 90 minutes. As my friend Trevor was heading out I tried talking him into taking a light of some kind. He refused saying he knew he would be back in time.

When 8:30 started rolling the sun really started hiding. Temp's started dropping so I made a wardrobe switch to long sleeve's and stood in the chute, headlight ready, flashlight in hand. Finally the stomach started telling me how nervous I was getting. Nervous for 2 reasons. One, Trev wasn't back in yet and most of the runners crossing at this point were wearing headlights, and it was now over 95 minutes in to his lap, and second, I was next. A few minutes later Trev popped into sight and you could only see him because of his "please don't hit me with your car, neon yellow" shirt that must have lit his way on it's own. I grabbed my GPS watch from him, the bib with our timing chip, clicked on my lights and began my trek out in to the wild.

All started fine. I had not seen this course before but luckily I have ridden on mountain bike single track before so I at least had an idea what I would be running on. The down side to it is that the bikes that are normally on these trails really dig a groove so when you are running on them your ankles constantly fall inward.

At roughly 2 miles in I came to a spot that stopped me. I figured I missed a turn so I went back. Nothing. After running back and forth and shining all my lighting on anything I could, I never found the trail forward. As I was becoming frustrated and debating starting to head back to regroup and find my trail, I saw another headlight in the distance. I hollered over to them to figure if they were coming up behind me and they were so I waited as patiently as I could. Finally the other runners headlight poked out from behind a hill and I started running toward him. I got turned in the right direction and went on. I probably gained a minute on him and kept pushing. The Winona Trails are impressive. On bike I can't fathom some of their climbs. You had to side skip down some hills and get a running start on some of the ups. I was grabbing trees on the way down one stretch just so I didn't face plant. I ended up catching and passing 2 girls along the course. One at about 6.5 miles who still had another 10 mile lap to go and one lady at about 8 miles that had 2 laps still to go! After seeing the results the next day the first girl I passed finished at 1 a.m. and the other finished at 6 in the morning. 15.5 hours after starting!

After the results coming in here was the breakdown...

Runner 1 1:31:19

Runner 2 1:38:21

Runner 3 1:29:40

Runner 4 1:37:47

Runner 5 1:59:30

Total time 8:16:37

How did first place do in the 50 mile SOLO? 7:00:40!!!!!

I had a great time. Our team was great and everyone did very well. I told the team before I went out "just know now, if I come in at 90 minutes, I cheated like crazy!"

Nothing you can do about getting lost in the dark of night. I feel I could hit 1:45 on the same course, in the same conditions, but you can't make up for walking around for 10 or so minutes. Either way, I look forward to doing it again next year.

Service after the Sale. Part 1.....

By: Brent

I had a very good holiday season. VERY GOOD. I would imagine so did Garmin. I know this because between gifts and gift certificates, I got TWO devices to feed my running / biking / geeking habits. The Edge 500 I have spoken about which sits on my bike and is an amazing little creation. The second item I bought on my own will with a gift card to Best Buy. The Garmin Forerunner 305. This little critter handles it all, in a wrist mount version, but unlike the Edge 500, it can handle multiple sports so when I am running, it talks to me in minutes/mile and when it is in biking mode it is in miles per hour mode. This 305 is MANY triathletes go to devise because of how easy it switches from sport to sport. I love this devise a lot, yet for different reasons than my Edge 500. Other than being in a Tri, I doubt I would use it on the bike because it is a bulky piece to have on the wrist while riding the bike. I also love it because as far as GPS watches, no matter what amount of sport you are doing, the 305 can cover it, for "only" $150 dollars. It really is a great watch.

I have used it 4 times. 2 training runs and 1 trail race, then I also went out on Sunday for a training run, getting ready for the Indy Mini in May. The weather called for snow to start up in the late morning so I chose to get out before it all started. I thought I would shoot for a 6 mile run or so. All was going well. A bit windy but until I made the turn back on my out and back route, no issues. Well as the turn was made to head back, the big FAT flakes started in, but the best part of running outdoors, now I had to finish. Again nothing really amazing to report, but all went well. As I was finishing up my route I stop at the same point every time and walk the last 1/4 of a mile for my cool down. On this last stretch there is a little half circle road that adds next to nothing to the distance, maybe a 1/10th of a mile, but since this was the longest I had gone in a while I figured the extra cool down would be good for me. As I was wrapping up this little bonus cool down, I started to slide on my left foot. I rushed to get my right foot down and thought, "Okay, everything melted and I am on the smoothest ice ever created" So I safely stepped to the right to get off the ice and started to repeat the process. As I was doing the boot scooting boogie, Gravity decided to get involved and hurled me to the ground.

As I stood up I did a quick dust off and glanced at my beloved Garmin Forerunner 305 watch only to see the display was smashed. I hit some buttons and heard it was still beeping telling me it was on, yet I could see nothing. I was just a short walk from home, and while evaluating myself and deciding I was fine I was really annoyed with myself and what I had just done.

This morning I hopped on garmin.com and sent the service depatment a letter to see what can be done. The good news is it still works, I just have no idea what it says until later when I log it into garminconnect.com but on the run, I would much rather know what is happening.

Yes, I am okay. Yes, I will be better when garmin gets back to me in "3 working days"

Race Day: Frosty 5k, Elkhart, IN

Image by koocbor via Flickr

By Brent:

Talk about an unplanned event. Not the race organizers, ME!?!

I have not run in a good 3 weeks. That was a slow 4 mile outing learning about my Garmin 305 GPS watch. Well low and behold I was told about the Frosty 5k 2 days before it was happening. I am in pretty good "biking shape" but I have lost a lot of my running ability. It was a nice cheap $20 entry fee but it wasn't that I knew people so much running it that interested me. It was the course. Running in the snow around Sim's Oak Hills Golf Course. Even golfing there can be a challenge. You can park in the fairway and lose your golf cart in some of the "potholes" they have in the fairways. The thought of running there was kinda fun.

I knew I should stretch myself out a bit and get the legs moving a bit so I told myself I would go for a short leisurely paced run Friday and then the race would be Saturday at 10.

Well, I did go out and run but I did too much, too fast. I ran 2.5 miles averaging 9.30/mile. I was thinking more like a mile or 1.5 miles around 11 minute miles.

Race day I was already feeling the tenderness from the day prior. The course was quite snowy. In fact it was a lot snowy. At all times your were running on at least 3 inches of snow. At 220 lbs I don't exactly float across the white stuff so needless to say you were constantly catching your traction as you went along. Add in the hills and 30 degree weather for that matter and you can imagine it was no ones personal best time.

I think for $20 this is a race that next year I would be interested in again just because of the challenge and to see what more I could do to my time. A couple things I would do different next year? A few, but honestly the big thing would just be the fact of running more prior to the day before the race. Also I think I would have worn my Yak Trax. I only didn't because the race called it "part paved and part trail" so I figured more like a snowy version of Steve's Run in Dowagiac, MI. Well, it was ALL trail, but now I know. Knowing the course always helps to so I hope this happens again next year.

The race organizers need to advertise this race a bit better would be the only thing I have to add to the preparation of the Frosty 5. This was the second year and there were 39 runners. I have no idea how anyone knew about the inaugural event, but alas, it must have happened.

Well, my ankles are still sore but it nice knowing the race season has already started!!! Keep on melting snow!!!!

Hands and Feet!

By: Brent

So to catch everyone up to speed on the "Metacarpal Mishap" the official word from the Doctor was that Jeff had a inter articular fracture the base of the 5th Metacarpal bone (in line with the pinky finger but within the hand portion, not the finger) on the right hand and that the bone itself was also displaced (no longer in line with where it should be is how I interpret that) but after more testing it would not require any future tweaking to get it back to where it needed to be. This is now cast in a pretty blue hand cast. Per Wikipedia, this is also the most common bone to be injured when throwing a punch. At this point, Jeff will be placing his biking and MMA heavy weight title fight on hold for at least 4 weeks.

Jeff's arm in a cast

Also this week, I signed up to run my first half marathon in what will be 2 years. I will be participating in my second running of the "Indy Mini", part of the Indy 500 festival weekend. I was asked by a co worker if I was doing it this year and I said that I hadn't really thought about it. My first running of it, which was also my first half marathon was a slightly bitter experience which I wrote about here. Long story short, the Indy Mini brings in about 35,000 runners and my friend Jonny the Fox signed me up and put me in a terribly slow pace causing me to get stuck in a Corral S, plus the road we started on was under construction so by the time the gun went off to start the race, it was 45 minutes before I got to cross the START line. Keep in mind the people that win this thing, were crossing the FINISH line 15 minutes after I started the exact same race. But after the road now being fixed and I was able to talk my wife into joining me in this race and the co worker, and as I am signing up I am hearing about more and more people I know running this, I was a sucker to say yes.

So being a 3 time half marathoner and having run a full marathon this year I want to tweak my training plan. Running gets boring. In the marathon, no amount of music on an iPod can keep you that entertained, so to train for 16 weeks, then have to run the run, I have a plan for success.

1) Start running, but don't start "training". It's one thing to just "go for a run". It's another to have to "go for a run". See how "just" and "have" changed how exciting that sounded.

2) Don't get hurt, or try any stupid mountain bike tricks.... well, we'll see how that pans out.

3) Re-re-re-read "My life on the run" by Bart Yasso. Every time I read it, it makes me want to not only run, but make sure I am happy with the decisions I am making in life.

4) Slightly revise the amount of Ice Cream I eat in the evenings. SLIGHTLY.

5) Keep up with the group rides on Wednesday nights at All About Cycling. Nice change of pace from running, plus keep my legs for and during cycling season.

6) Portion control, portion control, portion control.

7) Reduce my training plan down to 10-12 weeks, but get myself comfortable on my own schedule prior to training actually beginning with being able to run 6-7 miles hard.

I would love to see myself drop the weight back to the 200 mark, however, I leave that decision up to God. I am not a "dieter" by any means. If I lose it, awesome, its less luggage I have to carry with me around the course, and I know I will benefit from it, but again, I always have this mental image of myself from high school graduating at 6'-3" and 154 lbs. I looked fairly sickly.

OK, I think thats it for today. I will let you know how things progress.

May 7, 2011. Indy Mini. Goal Time: 1:55.00. Current P.R. 2:01.51.

My First 5K! Sunburst 2010

 By: Jeff

Since January I have been preparing for my first 5K.  This past Saturday (June 5, 2010) I took on this challenge at the Sunburst races in South Bend.

On Friday night I drove over to South Bend to pick up my bib and my timing chip.  I was pleasantly surprised with how easy that process was.  There were a few people, but it was by no means crowded.  Saturday morning I woke up early to take my son to the babysitters.  I was in downtown South Bend about 40 minutes before the start.  It was fun to watch people mill about and talk about their race strategies.  Fifteen minutes before the start time they announced everyone to begin lining up on the road for the start of the race.  There where 3,169 runners in the 5K.  The road could not handle the mass of people, so I just stood off to the side of the road, towards the back of the crowd, and took a picture with my cell phone. There was the singing of the National Anthem.  And then the gun went off, the race was underway.

The Start:

So as people started to move towards the start line they would move, and then stop, and then move, and then again stop.  Brent has talked about this before, and apparently it is a common phenomena at most races.  After a couple of minutes I crossed the start line and eased into a nice beginning pace.  I was feeling pretty good, Brent joined me for the first half mile, then he had to return for the start of his 10K race.  I ran the first, lets call it three-quarters of a mile.  Then there was a little downhill towards the St. Joseph River.  Once you crossed the bridge over the river, which is a little over a mile into the race, the course goes uphill for about the next three quarters of a mile.  This was defiantly the toughest section for me, and I probably walked more of it, then I ran.  I passed the two mile marker, and honestly felt like I was having a slow race.  Mile three was mostly flat, and I ran more then I walked.  Finally I saw the stadium.  By far the coolest part of the race was entering Notre Dame Stadium through the tunnel.  The finish line is at the 50 yard line in the stadium.

The Finish:

So I made sure that I ran all the way through the tunnel and all the way to the finish line.  When I crossed the line they announced my name on the P.A. system, which was kind of cool.  After the race I got some grapes and some water.  People mostly just hung out on the field.  I got to watch the winner of the 10K cross the finish line.  I also got to see my friend Gary cross the line.  I stayed and watched as Brent had a strong finish to his 10K.  Overall it was a lot of fun and I finished with a time of 0:46:16, which is better than I thought I did, but not as good as what I wanted to do.  So that means I have to keep training, and start working on my next race.  Brent will have a review of his 10k posted soon.

The Glass City Marathon Reveiw.

Image via Wikipedia

By: Brent

I have run plenty of races. I started small and graduated up. I ran my first 5k at age 30 after having my second daughter and realizing I wasn't getting any smaller, or younger, or healthier. I weighed in at around 238 lbs. My first race was at an 11:30+ mile. I was pleased to know I could finish, but knew I had more in the tank. I ran a couple more and always saw progress. Then I stepped up to a 10k. This was a road/trail race. I honestly thought they had mismarked the course. I knew somehow they had sent me on a 10 miler and everyone was laughing at me. Nope, it appears it had been marked as expected. I then ran a couple more 10k's and again, always saw progress. I finally got down to under an hour and felt pretty good about that. I then stepped up to my first half marathon. 13.1 miles amongst 35,000 others. I honestly didn't enjoy the crowd but I was okay with the length. It was 40 minutes of waiting from the time the gun fired to the time I finally started the start line. That alone put me in a funk and I just never shook that. I entered 2 more half marathons and again, always saw improvement. I started flirting with a 2 hour half marathon and I liked the sound of that. I figured that since I was so close to the 2 hour point, I should step up again.

4/25/10. Glass City Marathon. 26.2 miles. Toledo, OH. 700 Marathon runners. Dead flat. The weather made for tricky game time decision as far as what to wear. It was 50 degrees and had rained hard the night before. The forecast was still pretty spotty looking as far as what would happen, but it was rain or shine and the most important thing was that it started. Elizabeth went to the race with me and as they are saying the final announcements I change my mind. I'll drop the long sleeve shirt and just go short sleeve. She helped me change my bib to the short sleeve and about the time I got my hat on, the gun fired. As always the crowd pushes and you feel that instant adrenaline, then it bottlenecks and you feel like a dope walking for 15 seconds, then you take off again. Its like detonating a bomb, then stopping to tie your shoe. So the race began and for the first mile and a half it takes me a little bit to get in a groove. Then you sink in and left right left right just seems to be an after thought. You forget breathing and you just coast. I remembering looking around in some of the subdivisions that it trekked us through thinking, "I have never been to Toledo, but this is a wonderful city" So around mile 4 I thought, "hmmmm. I gotta pee." But I was coasting along nicely at a 9:30 pace and I really didn't want to break that. I pushed on. At about mile 6, I was started chatting with another lady who was running her first marathon. Very pleasant lady who was the overly positive thinker. Very nice. Just a little over the top with the whole "everything is sooooo wonderful". Either way we got in a great pace and both had 4:10 on the brain. We coasted along with no complaints (not that she would have heard them anyways). We hit the halfway point and it was roughly 2:05. I knew that was good and bad. Good that I was on pace at about my half marathon pace, and bad knowing that I had to maintain it all over to not lose my 4:10.

Pee was on my mind. It was getting worse. I had that thought. Yes I did. "How bad is a wet sock?" Then it dawned on me... I will not be winning anything. Zero. No amount of urine in my shoe was going to be worth it. At mile 16 we were still kicking along at 9:30's but I saw port a potty's and it felt like it was going to be the right move. I checked my watch before going in. No line, but the "process" felt like an eternity. Come on, come on...... Okay! ...get back to it! But it was tricky. That stop felt very rewarding. it gave the muscles time to tighten and the lactic acid some time to set in. Even if this wasn't true, in my head, it happened. I knew I was doomed. From 16 on it was a struggle.

For about 10 miles I mixed running and a strong willed walk. It wasn't what I wanted but it wasn't rolling over and letting the marathon win either. I passed each mile marker and always felt a bit of relief with each pass. When I hit mile 22 I thought, you did it. Your going to make it, push on. I thought with 3 miles left, you can run it out to the finish... but I couldn't get the body to agree. With 1.2 left I thought okay, we can finish this. You could see the stadium that you would be finishing at. But I couldn't get it going, still mixing short runs with longer walks that were still spirited no doubt. At mile 25 one volunteer yelled "Water, Gatorade, Beer!" With the iPod blasting, I flinched. BEER!?!?! I grabbed one thinking this will be the best story ever! I took a college gulp of the coldish Coors Light and instantly thought, this was a horrible idea. I still needed to juggle my guts another 1.2 miles so I dumped it (Sorry Beer Gods, just poor timing!) Just after the 25 mile marker the 4:30 pacer passed me. So I knew I could hang in there for this, the last mile. I mixed my pace and we switched back and forth until we finally made the turn in to the stadium. I knew I could finish with a run. No questions. I looked good, as I always do at any 2 given moments.. 1) Camera man 2) Finish line. Never let them see you walk in the newspaper. You have to be ready to pick up the pace and you never know when the camera man will hop out from a bush. Race camera men are like ninjas but at the finish of my first marathon, I knew I would be lookin' good.

At the end of the day I ran a 4:31:57. A PR (naturally). Did I have that feeling of okay, when is the next marathon? Nope. I wanted to throw up. I wanted to cry. I wanted a hot tub. You do instantly think about the pee break and think "what if..." But I really didn't care. I won't say I will never run another, but the marathon isn't my favorite distance. I love the bike. I want to get into Duathon's and I am thrilled that I completed a full marathon. I knew if I did a duathon first (run, bike, run) I may never do a full marathon so to me I have now graduated on to do another sport.... Multisport.

Overall thoughts of the course. Very pretty. Lots of nice grassy, forest area's. The downside, the course was frequently on 6 and 7 mile straight sections. Wind was tough but then you do it for 6 and 7 miles straight, it gets really boring. If I could have hung with that lady, it would have helped having someone to pass the time with but overall, I was very pleased with the course.

4:31:57. PR.

Finding your motivation....anywhere you can get it.

Image by stuant63 via Flickr

By: Brent

The competition is out there. She is training when you are sleeping. He is doing speed work while you are catching your breathe. Mine is out running while I can see him pass my house from my couch. He is a good 20 years older than I am. We have never talked. I don't know where he lives. He is known in my house as "the competition".

When we moved to our current home over a year ago, I started seeing him quickly and often. He seems to do a lot of running right as I am getting home. He has a funny little stride. Not powerful or graceful or anything pretty. Elbows at 90 degrees with tiny little swings. As a passerby I would probably giggle if I saw him out.

Last summer I was headed back to the house from a 4 mile out and back. As I approached the last intersection before my house, leaving me .7 miles to go, "the competition" had just turned onto the same stretch of road. He was about 20 yards in front of me. The race was on! I upped my tempo. Increased my stride length. I knew right then no "oldie" was going to beat me back to my house, but as he got smaller and smaller I thought, "this guy came to play today." It was not my day. If I recall correctly, this was the day he was nicknamed, "the competition".

Fast forward to 2010. This past weekend I was in the middle stretch of my 16 week marathon training and my schedule called for a 14 mile run. I broke it down into one loop at 9.x miles and a second loop of 4.x miles. The first 13 miles went great but as with all long runs, when your done, your done. As I approached the final intersection to make the home stretch, I spotted "the competition" only this year we were in the opposite locations. I was a bit closer and going to make the turn before he got to the intersection. I had a disadvantage compared to him circa 2009...I only had maybe an 18 yard advantage, not the football field 20 yards he had, yet I would not let this hinder my performance.

I make the turn and instantly start the push. .7 miles to go. 3,696 feet of victory. I instantly increase my focus on the "finish line", a single white and orange gas pipe that sticks out of the ground that tells me when I should start my 3 minutes of walking that cools me down before I get to the house. By removing my headphones like a ninja I was able to listen for his heavy feet to be beating into the ground or I knew I would at least hear him panting trying to catch me. Knowing I had already finished 13 miles I decided at every phone pole I would push a bit harder to make up for my inevitable slowing down. As cars would pass I payed close attention to if they shot back over or if they stayed out, informing me that he was hot on my trail. I could not tell one way or another but refused to look back and show my concern. As I approached my "finish line" gas pipe, I knew there was no way that I could let him pass me as I was in my "cool down walk" so I decided to push past my cool down. I came collapsing to a halt 2 houses in front of mine, I slowly turned to see how badly I had destroyed him in my secret race of 2010. Nothing. He had turned off at the intersection and was never behind me at all.

Obviously I scared the crap out of him and he didn't even want to attempt it. I understand.

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Running with Yak's

By: Brent

Northern Indiana has the ability to snow. Snow hard. Snow often. Snow in May. It also has the ability to rain, AFTER it snows. We Hoosiers joke that you always get 4 seasons, just no tellin' when these seasons will hit and in what order. For that reason, my lovely wife made a purchase for me. Yaktrax Pro's arrived on my step, right as it turned 50 degrees out. So they sat...for a while. Luckily (I guess, for them) Father Winter decided to have another go of it and we have dipped back into the 20's and the snow has begun to float from the heaven's again.

Prior to Elizabeth's surprise purchase I too had been doing some research as I stumbled upon a Runner's World article about Ice Cleats. You can find that article here. I liked the description and the website of Yaktrax best, so when I told her about my future purchase, she informed me to hold off a couple days before I do it so I don't have two pairs.

When I got the Yak's I quickly put them on. You get your toe into the tip and pull the back on like a slightly small torn goulash, and then fasten the Velcro strap across the top. Easy and simple to get on. The bottom is like a crossing series of coils that dig into the surface. The overall comfort of them is pretty good. They can take a bit of fidgeting to get in a good spot. Myself having a huge size 15 foot, the XL size really gave me no issues. I am aware of the outer strap that rides by the little toe, but it's not in issue and I get no rubbing, just aware of it.

So my first run in them was a 3 mile run. The conditions were cold with old packed snow but the roads were only 40% covered. I had to run some shorter lengths on the pavement, which in the YakTrax's was not horrible, but I wouldn't encourage it for long periods of time. When I got to the snowy areas I was very impressed. They dug into the snow and felt very secure. The thing that I felt from them is now rather than "leaping" UP you pushed off and didn't think so much about your landing. I have been a pretty balanced, sure footed runner. No falls. The occasional odd ankle twist hasn't stopped me or made me tender, but in the snow I never feel "fast" because I feel like I bounce more than run. With the YakTrax, you can RUN. I did have on the occasional step, a bit of slip at toe off, but after a quick adjustment I didn't notice it happen as much. From slush to packed snow I always felt very solid in my stride.

My next outing with the Yak's was right after a full snow. As a big runner (200 lbs) I wasn't as happy with the feel because I cut through so much, I kept feeling the coils digging the concrete at toe off. Maybe in a lighter runner, this wouldn't have been so noticeable, but it was kind of annoying. With that aside, I still felt safe in the Yak's.

I would recommend these to just about anyone. It's a worth while $30 investment (or gift) that can't hurt. I would imagine there is a market for these in a trial running application, but I can't say if they would get all packed with dirt or not. I am hoping to run the Steve's Run 10k again, but would not recommend it with that much distance on the road.

I suppose the cheaper option that can be tried prior to dropping $30 into believing me is this. Has anyone tried this before? Just curious.......

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16 Weeks of Training

Image by thomasbrandt via Flickr

By: Jeff

It is official.  I am registered for my first 5K.  Yep this guy will be running 3.107 miles in June. OK, OK I know seems small compared to uber-marathon running Brent.  Well with that being said we all have to start somewhere. So, how you ask am I going to accomplish this?

• First:  Tell everyone I know.  Sure they'll laugh and say, "ya right".  But It will hold me accountable.  And I would feel embarrassed if I did not accomplish it.
• Second:  Well I'm telling the world by posting it here on this blog.  How's that for commitment?
• Third: Finally I am doing a 16 week training, following a guide by Runner's World's smart coach.

There you go. It is out there.  And now I need to go and begin this journey. I'll keep you posted on how the training is going.

Keeping Track

Image via Wikipedia

By: Jeff

When I began riding my bike into work last year I decided that I would log all of my miles.  I wanted to do this for a couple of reasons.  First to provide a sense of history.  Looking back on what I have achieved provides me motivation for the future.  The second reason is to see progress.  I want to see if I am improving in my times, distance, overall fitness.  So as began to keep track of this I stumbled upon Bicycling.com 's training log.  This was very useful in accomplishing the tracking that I wanted.  It even has a place for runs and other cross training activities.

So that brings me to this year.  I have decided that I would keep logging on Bicycling.com, but that I would also try a couple other sites.

• Bicycling.com - Provides a nice log for cycling activities.  Secondary logging  for cross training activities.  Provides day, week, month, year, and total summaries.  Also includes tools to share information on a blog or website.
• RunnersWorld.com - This is managed by the same company as Bicycling.com.  For the most part this is the same as Bicycling.com's log in reverse.  More emphasis on running, with cycling include in the cross training logs.  Again it includes tools to share information on a blog or a website.

• Active.com - This website has a general log that includes several different activities.  This site seems to be more social in nature, as in you can become friends with other members of the website.  I have not found any tools in here to share information outside of the site.  The nice part about this site is that several events, such as marathons and cycling events, use this site for registration and for posting times.  When they post times you can than link them directly to your training log.

I have also looked at Mapmyrun.com and Livestrong.com.  Livestrong is good if you also want to track what you are eating.  For now though I am going to stick with the three above sites.  At what point does all this tracking become to tedious?  Are there any other sites out there that you use or would suggest?

Marathon training day #1...with new toys!!!

By: Brent

And hello faithful followers. This Xmas season the family decided to go a new route and instead of buying for everyone, we chose to draw names. my name was chosen by my mother-in-law. I liked my chances to score good stuff because she has always been very good to me and also loves me being a "runner". I say "runner" because I still feel like a rookie. I still get nervous at the starting line. I still feel like I look like a dork in my race gear. being 6'-3" I will always worry that my shorts are to short. with that said I have run in 10 official timed races. 5k's, 10k's and 3 half marathon's. most of this has happened in the last 2 years with all 3 half marathons happening in the last 6 months of 2009. so, when my name was drawn I put together a Xmas list for her. drum parts and a handful of running gear. Just before I emailed it to her I thought, I should put down a race entry. I had done some research and had already found a race in Toledo that I liked the sound of. The Glass Bowl Marathon. 26.2 miles of pain and suffering, so I made it the last item on the list. A couple weeks later I got a call from the old woman saying check your e-mail. There it was..... Race Confirmation. Oh crap! That brings me to yesterday. Race day is April 25th. I have used the Runners World Smart Coach for most of my races. It's a good FREE program that is FREE. you can customize it by weeks training, using other race times and you can really customize it to work for your schedule. Well with the input that I gave it this week starts the training. 16 weeks of runs. shorty's, speed runs, runs that I will be gone long enough for my children to forget what I look like. It includes cross training days and what type of run you should be doing, like speed, tempo or what not.

Last night was day one and it was quite cold. I REALLY didn't want to go out but a big part of me did because I had new toys to try out. i have always liked running in the dark, only problem is....the dark. I never had a good lighting system. I have had Nathan vests with glow sticks in the them so people could see me, but nothing to help me see. For Xmas, my wife bought me a Energizer head lamp. Not the $90 Petzl, but the one you get at Target. $20.79. I expected nothing. First off, once you install the provided Energizer batteries and click the button, you get an aircraft landing beam of sunshine. not like the old plastic flashlight your dad gave you 14 years ago. a serious "this thing is going to blind you in 3.7 seconds" ray of light. then you click it again, and 2 red LED's shine for a dull reading light like in a small Cessna for a night flight. a third click provides you with the beam I used. 2 smaller LED's than the first one, but a better life length to the batteries and plenty of light to find your way. It had a solid fit, even for my misshapen head and I never felt like I had to change my stride to keep it on. Another nice feature was the tilt option. you can set it to shine lower than straight out from your eyes. I tilted it down to display the majority of the beam about 5 feet in front of me. I must say for a economy headlight, I was very impressed. To any runners that are looking for a unit that won't break the bank and let them go out into the night, I would have no concerns recommending this one.



All in all the run went well. Snow was packed good and slippage was minimal but in a review coming soon....Yaktrak's Pro ice slip on. Very Exciting!




Miles logged...3.9.

The Genesis

Image by ldandersen via Flickr

by: Brent

In the first half of 1977 two boys were born. By age 7 both boys had become best friends spending way too many hours together. Most of their time was spent riding bikes in never ending circles on driveways, parking lots, wooded areas and even into cemeteries. Listen, cemeteries are curvy and that makes for good race tracks. That and our parents told us not to so…yeah, we were DEFINITELY going there!

So what happens? We get drivers licenses. We meet girls. We have families. We get desk jobs. We get fat. FAT. So now we work to do something about it.

We are making a blog to do a couple things. 1) Remind us as we get older what we have done. 2) Share our experiences, good or bad with what we are working on. 3) Review product whether it be a $3 light or a $5000 bike and also races and trails. 4) Make friends that share our interests.

We look forward to the coming months and please feel free to comment and share your reviews with us. Thanks.

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